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I have to acknowledge that my mixed Afro-Latina heritage has given me both a lighter complexion and a looser curl pattern than most Black women. These factors alone grant me privileges in the workplace, privileges that must be acknowledged in order to have an honest conversation.

She likes her freckles, counting them and eagerly searching for more with me at the end of one of those long summer days. When she does this, I can't help but think of all of the time and agony I could have saved if only I counted the freckles instead of trying to scrub them away.

I am a proud, big-haired girl. In photos, my head is usually double the size of anyone else's. Us curly-haired girls have some secrets (at least I do) that may surprise you when it comes to our hair care regimen.

The problem with curly hair in the media is that it's usually a "before" look -- before the main character becomes pretty, confident and self-actualized. Think Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman or Anne Hathaway in The Princess Diaries.

I see oodles of products promising weightless, frizz free curls with bounce, movement and volume. Sounds fantastic for my natural girls, but I see very few companies directing their messages to women with relaxed hair.

Let's be honest, many people view dreadlocks as "dreadful". I sincerely hope that change is on the horizon. Niyya Tenee, the founder of Locs Revolution, is on a mission to uplift the image of locked hair and as part of that mission she is promoting Loc Appreciation Day on June 28, 2014.

I remember looking in the mirror with the same quiet discontentment, like I didn't measure up. Girls who look at themselves that way tend to limit themselves. I didn't want any girl of mine growing up with a poor self-image.

It was the year of the winged bangs and I was hell-bent on having them. Despite being born with a headful of ringlet curls and living in an oppressively humid climate, I wanted to belong. I was 14, it was the '70s, and a world of adolescent males awaited me. That is, if I could tame my damn hair.